UNMENTIONABLES: US Patent Office plays coy

WHEN Norwegian underwear brand Comfyballs attempted to register its trademark in the US, the Patent Office turned down the application on the grounds that the label is vulgar. Yet the brand has been accepted in Australia and New Zealand as well as in Scandinavia and the EU. The official US explanation is that since the label implies that a man’s testicles will be comfortable when wearing the underpants, the word “balls” has an offensive meaning.